5TU 


D!OCES£  OF  • 
REGISTRAR'S  COLLECTION. 


©he  Sermon 

DELIVERED" AT  THE 

©ONSEG^ACTION 

OF 

I^ey.      B.  ftjAmsoN,  D.  D., 

AS  BISHOP  OF  EAST  CAROLINA 
WILMINGTON,  N.  C,  April  17,  1884. 

BY  THE 

Kt,  Rev.  T.  B.  LYMAN,  D.  D., 

BISHOP  OF  NORTH  CAROLINA. 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2014 


https://archive.org/details/continuityperpet01lyma 


The  Continuity  and  Perpetuity  of  the  Episcopal  Office. 


THE  SERMON 

DELIVERED  IN 

S.  James1  Church,  Wilmington,  Hpril  17. 1884, 

AT  THE 

CONSECRATION 

OF 

REV,  ALFRED  AUGUSTIN  WATSON,  D.  D, 

As  Bishop  of  East  Carolina, 
BY  THE 

RT,  REV.  THEODORE  BENEDICT  LYMAN,  D,  D, 

Bishop  of  North  Carolina. 

Published  by  request  of  the  Bishops  and  other  Clergy  present 
at  the  Consecration,  and  of  the  Vestry  of  S.  James'  Parish. 


BISHOPS  AND  OTHER  CLERGY 


Present  at  the  Consecration,  Aijril  17th, 
1884. 


Rt.  Rev  William  Mercer  Green,  D.  D  ,  LL.  D.,  of  Mississippi. 

Rt.  Rev.  Henry  Adams  Neely,  D.  D.,  Maine 

Rt.  Rev.  William  Bell  White  Howe,  D.  D.,  .  .  South  Carolina. 
Rt.  Rev.  Theodore  Benedict  Lyman,  D.  D.,  .  North  Carolina. 
Rt.  Rev.  George  Franklin  Seymour,  D.  D.,  LL.  D.,  Springfield. 

Rt.  Rev.  Alfred  Magill  Randolph,  D.  D.,  Virginia. 

Rev.  D  V.  M.  Johnson,  D.  I)  Brooklyn,  L.  I. 

Rev.  J.  G.  Armstrong,  D.  D.,  Richmond,  Ya. 

Rev.  A.  Toomer  Porter,  D.  D.,  Charleston,  S.  C 

Rev.  E.  N.  Joyner,  Rock  Hill,  S  C. 

Rev.  A.  S.  Smith,  D.  D.,  Ringwood,  N.  C. 

Rev.  R.  B.  Sutton,  D.  D.,  Kittrell.  N.  C. 

Rev.  J.  E.  C.  Smedes,  D.  D.,  Raleigh,  IN.  C. 

Rev.  W.  R.  Wetmore,  Lincolnton,  N.  C. 

Rev.  Bennett  Smedes,  Raleigh,  N.  C. 

Rev.  M.  M.  Marshall,  D.  D  Raleigh,  N.  C 

Rev.  Edward  Wootten,  Statesville,  N.  C 

Rev.  E.  R.  Rich  Raleigh,  N.  C. 

Rev.  Jos.  Blount  Cheshire,  Jr.,  Charlotte,  N.  C 

Rev.  Wm.  Walker,  Pittsboro,  N.  C. 

Rev.  Charles  C.  Quin  Wadesboro,  N  C. 

Rev.  N.  C.  Hughes  Chocowinity,  N.  C. 

Rev.  Jos.  C.  Huske,  D  D.,  Fayetteville,  N.  C. 

Rev.  Thomas  M.  Ambler,  Wilmington,  N.  C. 

Rev.  James  Carmichael,  D.  D.,  Wilmington,  N.  C. 

Rev.  Israel  Harding,  Kinston,  N.  C. 

Rev.  Nathaniel  Harding  Washington,  N.  C. 

Rev.  Robert  B.  Drane,  Edenton,  N.  C. 

Rev.  V.  W.  Shields,  Newbern,  N  C. 

Rev  T.  B.  Haughton,  Williamston,  N  C. 

Rev. <  harles  O.  Brady,  Wilmington,  N.  C 

Rev.  N  E.  Price,  Greenville,  N.  C. 

Rev.  A.  DeR.  Meares,  Wilmington,  N.  C. 

Rev.  H.  P.  McDuffey,  Fayetteville,  N.  C. 


SERMON. 


Acts  i  :  20. — "His  Bishoprick  let  another  take." 

$jn  |HESE  words,  in  their  original  application,  point 
us  to  the  sad  breach  which  was  made  in  the  ranks 
of  the  Apostles  by  the  perfidy  and  defection  of 
Judas.  And  they  show,  also,  that  the  office  which  he 
bore  was  not  one  which  was  linked  solely  to  tho^e 
who  originally  shared  it,  but  that  it  was  meant  to  be 
continued  and  perpetuated.  The  term  Bishoprick  which 
is  here  applied  to  the  responsible  position  which  Judas 
was  called  to  fill  signifies  an  office  of  oversight  and  su- 
pervision. And  as,  in  this  connection,  it  is  expressly 
employed  as  synonymous  with  Apostleship,  so  it  more 
fully  defines  the  nature  of  that  office.  Now,  the 
Christian  Ministry,  in  all  its  parts,  implies  more  or  less 
of  oversight  :  There  is  the  care  and  the  supervision 
which  is  exercised  by  those  who  minister  to  single 
congregations,  and  to  whom  the  cure  of  souls  is  com- 
mitted. And  then,  again,  there  is  that  higher  respon- 
sibility which  is  devolved  upon  those  who  are  called 


4 


to  the  general  supervision  and  government  of  the 
Church;  who  are  made,  in  a  more  special  manner,  the 
guardians  of  the  faith;  and  whose  it  is  also  to  admit 
men  to  the  ranks  of  the  sacred  ministry,  and  to  exer- 
cise a  godly  discipline.  Now,  I  think  no  one  can  carefully 
rjad  the  New  Testament  without  seeing  that  the  spe- 
cial training  and  instruction  which  was  given  by  our 
Lord  to  the  twelve  Apostles  was  intended  to  prepare 
and  qualify  them  for  this  higher  position.  This  was 
the  Bishoprick  which  belonged  to  the  twelve  whom 
Jesus  called.  Ail  this  seems  to  be  very  generally  ad- 
mitted, but  with  many  there  is  a  serious  doubt  as  to 
whether  this  office  was  meant  to  be  continued.  They 
are  inclined  to  regard  it  as  altogether  an  extraordinary 
office,  which  was  linked  inseparably  to  the  first  Apos- 
tles. 

But  the  history  which  stands  connected  with  the 
text  shows,  I  think,  how  very  erroneous  is  any  such 
supposition.  When  Judas,  through  the  temptation  of 
Satan,  was  led  to  abandon  the  high  office  and  distin- 
guished privileges  which  he  was  permitted  to  share, 
another  was  at  once  chosen  to  take  the  office  which 
was  thus  abandoned  and  forfeited.  "His  Bishoprick 
let  another  take." 

Nor  was  it  a  part  of  our  Lord's  plan,  as  some 
have  supposed,  to  confine  this  high  office  simply  to 


5 


twelve  persons,  so  that  it  would  only  be  necessary,  as 
one  by  one  they  passed  away,  to  fill  up  the  ranks 
thus  successively  vacated.  St.  Paul,  who  was  called 
only  a  little  later,  was  surely  summoned  to  the  same- 
office.  He  says,  most  explicitly,  that  he  was  not  a 
whit  behind  ti  e  very  chiefest  Apostles.  And  this 
entire  equality,  which  St.  Paul  thus  claims,  was 
fully  and  freely  accorded  to  him  by  all  the  Apostles. 
Barnabas,  too,  who,  for  a  while,  was  closely  associated 
with  St.  Paul,  is  also  spoken  of  as  an  Apostle,  and  did 
certainly  fulfil  all  the  duties  which  the  other  Apostles 
discharged.  And  when  he  entered  upon  a  separate- 
field  of  labour  from  St.  Paul  there  is  no  indication  that 
he  was  clothed  with  any  less  power,  or  any  less  au- 
thority. True  it  is,  the  exercise  of  this  office  was  not 
limited,  as  it  afterwards  was,  to  a  specific  district. 
And  the  reason  of  this  is  plainly  apparent.  The  whole 
world  was  one  wast  missionary  field,  which  the  Lord 
had  committed  jointly  to  his  Apostles.  "Go.  ye," 
saith  He,  "into  all  the  world,  and  make  disciples  of  all 
nations."  A  division  into  separate  and  definite  districts 
was  an  aftergrowth,  just  as  it  is  now,  in  extended  mis- 
sionary territories.  And  it  required  no  little  time  to 
train  up  and  properly  instruct  a  body  of  men  who 
should,  when  thus  qualified,  be  called  to  these  higher 
duties  of  general  oversight  and  government.    If  we 


6 


watch  the  successive  steps,  in  the  progress  and  exten- 
sion of  the  Church,  we  shall  see  very  clearly  how  all 
this  was  overruled  and  directed.  When  St.  Paul  had 
laid  the  foundations  of  the  Christian  Church  in  Ephe- 
sus,  and  ordained  a  number  of  Presbyters,  to  whom  he 
committed  che  care  of  the  several  congregations  in 
that  populous  district,  and  when  other  duties  and  en- 
gagements made  it  necessary  for  him  to  withdraw 
from  that  personal  care  and  oversight,  which  he  had 
all  along  exercised,  he  sent  Timothy  to  stand  in  his 
place,  and  perform  there  all  the  duties  which  he  had 
hitherto  discharged.  Now,  what  those  duties  were, 
and  how  very  different  in  character  from  those  which 
devolved  upon  the  ordinary  Pastors,  we  may  see  very 
clearly  by  contrasting  the  instructions  given  by  St. 
Paul  to  these  Pastors,  with  the  exhortations  and  in- 
structions which  he  gave  to  Timothy.  In  the  20th 
chapter  of  the  Book  of  the  Acts  we  have  a  detailed 
account  of  the  meeting  of  these  Presbyters  with  St. 
Paul  at  Miletus,  and  there  he  gives  them  a  comprehen- 
sive and  earnest  farewell  charge,  enjoining  upon  them 
the  faithful  performance  of  their  varied  pastoral  duties. 
But  when,  a  little  later,  this  same  Apostle  sent  Timo- 
thy to  Ephesus,  we  find  him  clothing  this  earnest  and 
carefully  instructed  disciple  of  his,  with  the  full  care 
and  government  and  discipline  of  the  whole  Church  in 


7 


that  district  To  the  Pastors,  whom  he  addressed  at 
Miletus,  he  says  not  one  word  about  the  qualifications 
of  those  who  are  to  be  admitted  to  the  ministry — not 
one  word  about  any  part  which  they  are  to  take  in 
such  ordinations  ;  nor  does  he  enjoin  upon  them  any 
exercise  of  discipline.  But  when  Timothy  goes  by  ap- 
pointment to  the  same  city,  how  full  and  complete 
are  the  instructions  which  the  Apostle  gives  in  the 
two  Epistles  which  he  sends  to  him,  on  all  these  most 
important  particulars.  Very  clear  it  is  that  Timothy 
had  committed  to  him  an  office  of  government,  of  su- 
pervision, of  discipline,  and  of  widely  extended  au- 
thority. The  whole  Ephesian  Church  was  placed 
under  his  direction,  and  the  supervision  which,  at  the 
first,  St.  Paul  had  exercised  over  it,  is  now  devolved 
upon  Timothy. 

And  the  same  order  of  things  which  we  thus 
find  in  Ephesus,  is  seen  also  in  Crete.  The  Church 
had  gained  no  little  strength  and  influence  there, 
and  as  St.  Paul  could  no  longer  retain  the  supervision 
and  direction  of  its  affairs,  so  now  he  leaves  Titus 
who  had  been  his  co-worker,  to  occupy  his  place, 
and  discharge  the  like  responsible  and  important  du- 
ties. "For  this  cause,"  saith  he,  'left  I  thee  in  Crete, 
that  thou  mightest  set  in  order  the  things  that  are 
wanting,  and    ordain   elders  or  presbyters  in  even- 


8 


city."  And  then,  as  in  the  case  of  Timothy,  he  pro- 
ceeds to  point  out  the  varied  qualifications  which  he 
is  to  seek,  in  those  who  are  to  be  admitted  by  him  to 
the  ranks  of  the  sacred  ministry.  The  whole  govern- 
ment and  direction  of  the  Church  is  placed  under  his 
control,  and  he  is  encouraged  to  use  the  authority  thus 
committed  to  him,  for  the  protection  and  defense  of 
the  pure  faith  ol  the  Gospel,  and  in  the  stern  rebuke 
of  all  who  depart  from  that  faith.  False  teachers  he 
is  exhorted  to  "rebuke  sharply,  that  they  may  be  sound 
in  the  faith."  Surely  here  is  a  Bishoprick,  as  clearly 
defined  as  language  can  express  it.  Nor  let  any  sup- 
pose that  these  examples,  in  Ephesus  and  Crete,  were 
in  any  respect  peculiar  and  extraordinary.  On  the 
contrary,  we  find  just  this  office  of  supervision  and  au- 
thority in  all  districts  where  the  Christian  Church  was 
established.  The  seven  Churches  of  Asia,  which  are 
specifically  mentioned  in  the  Revelation  of  St.  John, 
had  each  its  Angel  or  Apostle.  These  are  words  of 
nearly  the  same  meaning,  and  both  alike  signify  one 
scut,  and  thus  call  our  attention  to  the  Divine  Com- 
mission with  which  they  were  each  invested.  Now 
these  Angels  or  Apostles,  because  they  were  clothed 
with  power  and  authority  to  guide  and  to  govern,  so 
were  they  each  held  responsible  for  the  spiritual  con- 
dition of  the  Churches  under  their  care. 


9 


Nothing  seems  clearer,  then,  from  the  plain  teach- 
ings of  the  New  Testament,  than  that  from  the  very 
beginning,  in  all  places  where  the  Christian  Church 
was  established,  there  were  found  those  who  were 
clothed  with  special  authcrity  as  Chief  Pastors,  and 
recognized  Rulers  in  the  Kingdom  of  God.  The 
minute  arrangement  of  separate  and  independent  Dio- 
ceses, grew  up,  step  by  step,  under  the  guidance  of 
the  first  Apostles,  as  Christianity  extended  its  sway 
more  widely,  and  in  proportion  as  their  own  personal 
care  and  guidance  became  no  longer  possible.  For  a 
time,  the  original  Apostles  were  as  I  have  already  in- 
timated, more  like  Missionary  Bishops,  exercising 
their  office  over  a  very  widely  extended  territory, 
where  they  often  went  as  the  very  first  teachers  of  the 
Gospel.  But,  as  their  faithful  labours  were  abundantly 
rewarded,  and  multitudes  of  people  were  gathered  into 
the  fold  of  Christ ;  when  men  were  raised  up  who 
were  sufficiently  instructed  and  qualified  to  be  invested 
with  the  higher  responsibilities  of  Chief  Pastors,  then 
it  was  that  separate  and  independent  Dioceses,  each 
with  its  own  Head,  were  gradually  built  up  and  estab- 
lished. In  every  part  of  the  world,  where  the  Chris- 
tian Church  gained  a  successful  lodgment,  we  find  it 
always  organized  tinder  the  guidance  of  a  superior  officer, 
whose  position  was  recognized  as  of  Divine  Appoint- 


IO 

meat  and  whose  authority  was  everywhere  acknowl- 
edged. 

True  it  is  that,  even  in  the  days  of  the  Apostles, 
there  were  found  here  and  there  those,  who  were 
jealous  of  this  authority,  and  sought  to  resist  it.  Men 
like  Diotrephes,  "who  loved  to  have  the  pre-eminence," 
were  ready  to  stir  up  strife,  and  contend  even  with 
those  whom  Christ  Himself  had  commissioned,  as 
Rulers  in  His  Kingdom.  Hut  the  stern  rebukes  which 
were  given  to  such  men,  the  bold  denunciation  of  oth- 
ers "who  said  they  were  Apostles  and  were  not,"  only 
marked,  the  more  plainly,  that  true  and  real  authority 
which  had  been  lodged  in  the  Church,  for  edification 
and  not  for  destruction.  These  sad  strifes  and  con- 
tentions, the  fruits  of  man's  sinful  nature,  are  carefully 
recorded  in  the  Word  of  God,  for  our  warning  and  in- 
struction. We  find  very  clear  indications  of  this  re- 
bellious spirit  in  the  old,  as  well  as  in  the  new  dispen- 
sation. What  contests  had  Moses  and  Aaron  with 
those  who  boldly  and  profanely  resisted  the  Authority, 
with  which  God  had  invested  them,  and  how  sorely 
were  they  punished  for  this  sinful  opposition !  And 
the  like  contests  reappeared  in  the  Christian  Church, 
when  men  showed  themselves  unwilling  to  submit  to 
what  Christ  had  ordained  and  established.  But  that 
organization  and  polity  which  was  so  uniform  in  the 


1 1 

beginning,  and  which  was  everywhere  constituted 
under  the  immediate  guidance  of  the  Apostles,  was 
openly  recognized  as  of  Divine  Appointment,  and  as 
its  influence  extended  wherever  the  sound  of  the  Gos- 
pel was  heard,  so  it  became  a  part  of  the  universal 
law,  in  the  One  Kingdom  of  God. 

Now  there  are  many  in  our  time,  who  are  most  im- 
patient of  all  reference  to  questions  of  this  sort.  They 
persist  in  regarding  them  as  matters  bearing  only  upon 
Church  Government,  and  the)'  wonder  why  sensible  men 
should  bewillingto  lay  so  much  stress  upon  what  seems 
to  them  of  so  little  importance.  But  the  grand  error  lies  in 
regarding  this  as  a  mere  question  of  Church  Govern- 
ment. //  rather  has  to  do  with  the  very  organization  of 
the  CJutreJi  of  God :  with  the  means  and  agencies  which 
Christ  has  established  for  the  guardianship  and  protec- 
tion of the faith  ;  for  perpetuating a  Divinely  Authorized 
Ministry ;  and  for  the  maintenance  of  godly  discipline. 

Surely,  my  brethren,  if  Our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  has 
made  clear  and  definite  arrangements  for  the  guidanee 
and  extension  of  His  Kingdom  here  on  Earth,  what  is  it 
but  the  highest  presumption  for  any  of  us  to  find  fault 
with  His  plan,  and  seek  to  make  some  substitution  of 
our  own. 

We  read  that  during  the  forty  days  which  intervened 
between  Our  Lord's  resurrection  from  the  dead,  and 


12 


His  triumphant  Ascension  into  Heaven,  He  manifested 
Himself  from  time  to  time,  to  His  chosen  Apostles, 
and  "spoke  to  them  of  the  things  pertaining  to  the 
Kingdom  of  God."  He  sought  thus  more  carefully  to 
instruct  them  as  to  the  proper  organization  of  that 
kingdom,  and  the  fitting  methods  for  its  successful  exten- 
sion. And  afterward,  in  fulfilment  of  His  promise. 
He  sent  down  upon  them  His  illuminating  Spirit,  to 
bt  ever  with  them,  and  in  them  ;  to  "guide  them  into 
all  truth"  ;  to,"bring  all  things  to  their  remembrance, 
whatsoever  He  had  said  to  them,"  to  be  an  inward 
source  of  strength,  of  courage  and  support,  and  thus 
more  fully  to  qualify  them  for  the  discharge  of  those 
responsible  duties,  which  He  had  laid  upon  them. 
And  when  thus  strengthened,  animated  and  directed 
by  this  inward  spiritual  power,  how  true  that  declara- 
tion of  the  Saviour,  "It  is  not  ye  that  speak,  but  the 
Spirit  of  your  Father  that  speaketh  in  you."  And 
hence  whatsoever  was  ordered  and  appointed  by  them, 
came  with  the  high  sanction  and  authority  of  God.  Theirs 
it  was  under  this  Heavenly  guidance,  to  lay  deep  the 
foundations, — to  guide  and  direct  all  things  which  had 
to  do  with  the  development  and  extension,  of  the  King- 
dom of  God. 

Century  after  century  passed  by,  without  any  mate- 
rial alteration  of  what  was  thus  considerately  estab- 


13 


lished.  Everywhere,  by  universal  consent,  there  was 
found  in  all  the  Churches,  scattered  through  the  world, 
a  Presiding  Officer,  whose  office  was  not  temporary 
but  permanent ;  to  whom  the  care  and  oversight, 
the  guidance  and  direction  of  the  Church  was  com- 
mitted ;  who  stood  and  was  recognized  as  the  special 
representative  of  Christ ;  as  one  of  the  Chief  Shepherds 
of  his  flock. 

We  all  know  how,  in  process  of  time,  the  attempt 
was  made,  and  with  too  much  success,  to  break  down 
this  Divinely  appointed  equality  among  those  who 
thus  shared  a  common  office.  We  are  well  acquainted 
with  the  successive  steps  by  which  the  Bishop  of  Rome 
sought  to  gain  a  pre-eminence  over  all  other  Bishops, 
and  extend  more  widely  his  authority,  until  it  finally 
culminated  in  his  claim  to  be,  in  a  special  sense. 
Christ's  Vicar  on  EartJi ;  the  in  fallible  Head  of  the 
whole  Church  of  God ;  the  One  Supreme  Bishop,  from 
whom  all  others  derive  only  a  delegated  authority  / 

Thanks  be  to  God  that  all  these  arrogant  and  impi- 
ous claims  have  long  since  been  boldly  rebuked  and 
resisted,  and  our  privilege  it  is  to  be  in  full  commun- 
ion with,  yea  to  derive  our  corporate  existence  from 
one  of  those  Ancient  Churches,  which  more  than  three 
hundred  years  ago,  shook  off  the  shackles  by  which 
the  Bishop  of  Rome  was  seeking  to  hold  her  in  sub- 


jection,  and  openly  proclaimed  and  asserted//^'  esssen- 
tial  equality  of  all  Bishops  in  the  one  Kingdom  of  God. 
Christ  alone  we  acknowledge  as  Supreme  Head  and 
King,  in  that  Kingdom  which,  here  on  Earth,  He  has 
established. 

But.  my  dear  brethren,  because  proud  and  extrava- 
gant claims  have  been  set  up  ;  because  the  Apostolic 
Office  has  been  magnified  into  a  kind  of  spiritual  roy- 
alty, we  should  act  most  unwisely  to  infer  that,  there- 
fore, the  office  itself  should  be  given  up  and  abandoned. 
What  is  so  clearly  an  office  of  Divine  institution,  and 
with  which  Christ  has  promised  his  presence  to  the 
end  of  the  world,  it  is  surely  our  duty  thankfully  to 
accept,  and  faithful!}*  to  perpetuate  ;  only  in  this,  as  in 
all  other  particulars,  we  must  strive  to  make  His  Ap- 
pointments harmonize  with  the  original  ideal. 

To-day,  the  Holy  Church  of  God  stands  just  as  much 
in  need  of  those  who  bear  rule  in  His  Kingdom,  as 
they  were  needed  in  the  beginning.  And  it  is  because 
this  great  truth  has  been  lost  sight  of,  and  this  Di- 
vinely appointed  office  has  been,  in  so  many  quarters, 
surrendered,  that  we  find  such  widespread  contradic- 
tions and  oppositions,  among  those  who  profess  to  be 
followers  of  the  same  Master.  When  the  order  of 
things  which  Christ  has  established  is  set  aside,  and 
men  follow  their  own  tastes,  and  their  own  favorite 


'  5 


theories,  what  may  be.  reasonably  iookcd  tor,  but 
the  utmost  confusion  on  the  one  hand,  and  on  the 
other,  the  most  grievous  departures  from  the  truth  as 
it  is  in  Jesus.  With  the  loss  of  the  divine  organization, 
there  eomes  sooner  or  later,  the  grievous  loss  of  the  fun- 
damental teachings  of  Christianity.  The  sad  spectacle 
which  is  presented,  here  in  our  own  land,  of  more  than 
one  hundred  different  and  discordant  sects,  all  osten- 
sibly ranged  under  the  banner  of  Christ,  yet  holding 
no  organic  connection  with  each  other,  this  is  the  natural 
and  legitimate  outgrowth  of  the  rejection  of  that  sim- 
ple organization  of  Christ  s  Kingdom,  which  was 
so  plainly  set  forth  and  established  by  the  first  Apos- 
tles. Now,  as  these  divisions  go  on  increasing  and 
multiplying,  and  extending  more  and  more  widely 
their  disintegrating  influence,  what  a  waste  of  energy 
— what  confusion  and  strife — what  jealousy  and  sus- 
picion— what  bitter  hostility  and  antagonism,  must  be 
the  necessary  result,  and  how  great  the  consequent 
hindrance  to  the  growth  and  extension  of  all  true  re- 
ligion. 

And  when  these  varied  and  antagonistic  forces  seek 
to  carry  the  Gospel  into  heathen  lands,  oh  !  what  are 
the  doubts  which  must  be  enkindled, — what  the  un- 
belief which  must  be  strengthened,  when  such  fearful 
contradictions  nre  witnessed  among  those  who  profess 


i6 

allegiance  to  one  and  the  same  Lord.  How  little  does 
such  a  spectacle  as  this,  harmonize  with  the.  spirit  of 
our  Saviour's  earnest  prayer — "that  they  all, may  be 
one,  as  thou  Father  art  in  me,  and  I  in  thee,  that  they 
also  ma}'  be  one  in  us,  that  the  world,  may  believe  that 
thou  hast  sent  me."  That  true  organic  unity,  which 
Christ  so  fervently  prayed  for,  we  must  not  be  tempted 
to  regard  as  an  idle  vision,  which  can  never  be  realized. 
Any  such  view  can  only  spring  from  lack  of  faith  in 
the  power  of  Christ.  And  the  first  step  to  its  realiza- 
tion must  surely  be  seen,  in  the  cultivation  by  us  all 
of  a  spirit  of  true  humility, — the  abandonment  of  pride 
and  arrogance  and  self-will  ;  and  the  faithful  accept- 
ance, in  all  meekness,  of  the  Gospel  system,  as  it  was 
originally  established,  and  of  that  holy  "faith,  which 
once  for  all  was  delivered  to  the  Saints."  To  those 
venerable  Churches  which  have  grafted  new  and 
strange  doctrines  upon  the  primitive  and  Apostolic 
faith,  to  those  later  organizations,  which  have  been 
content  to  depart  from  the  original  constitution,  and 
polity  of  the  Church  as  well  as  from  many  of  its  holy 
teachings,  to  all  alike  who  have  in  any  way  wandered 
from  the  ancient  landmarks,  we  say  in  the  expressive- 
language  of  the  Prophet,  "Stand  ye  in  the  ways  and 
see,  and  ask  for  the  old  paths,  where  is  the  good  way, 
and  walk  therein,  and  ye  shall  find  rest  for  your  souls." 


17 


All  personal  tastes,  and  personal  preferences,  must 
bend  to  that  which  is  Ancient,  and  Primitive  and 
Catholic.  All  variations  and  alterations  and  imagina- 
ry  improvements,  must  give  place  to  that  one  organist  I 
system  which  in  the  beginning  was  everywhere  the  santi . 
and  which  Our  Divine  Lord  surely  meant  should  be  per- 
petuated to  the  end  of  the  world. 

The  Apostolic  office — the  holy  Bishoprick,  which 
was  designed  to  be  the  centre  of  unity,  the  bond  of 
Christian  brotherhood,  that  office  may  not  be  lightly 
undervalued,  or  carelessly  thrust  aside. 

When  Judas  by  transgression  fell,  how  speedily  did 
his  fellow  Apostles  proclaim  the  continuity  and  perpe- 
tuity of  his  holy  office,  as  they  unitedly  declared,  "His 
Bishoprick  let  another  take." 

Now,  my  dear  brethren,  in  advocating  the  principles 
which  I  have  thus  sought  to  exhibit,  the  idea  will  at 
once  suggest  itself,  that  we,  who  hold  these  views,  are 
claiming  for  ourselves  the  sole  possession  of  the  truth, 
and  demanding  that  all  men  should  meekly  submit 
themselves  to  our  guidance  and  direction.  And  it  is 
not  strange  that  those  who  so  interpret  our  teachings, 
should  regard  them  as  arrogant  and  presumptuous. 

Now  just  here  it  is  that  we  are  grievously  misun- 
derstood. We  do  not  claim  for  ourselves  any  infalli- 
bility, yea  more,  we  are  willing  to  confess  that,  in 


1 8 


many  particulars,  we  fail  to  illustrate  the  spirit  and  the 
principles  of  the  Church  of  the  earliest  days.  But  those 
principles  and  that  spirit  we  would  ever  seek  to  hold 
up  before  our  own  eyes,  and  before  the  eyes  of  all 
men,  as  the  one  fixed  standard  to  which  we  should  ever 
be  striving  to  conform.  Private  opinions  and  private 
judgment,  when  exercised  in  open  disregard  of  the 
authorized  teachings  of  the  first  and  purest  ages,  can 
only  lead  to  the  most  grievous  errors,  and  the  most 
dangerous  delusions.  Nothing  is  more  needed  on 
every  side,  than  the  diligent  and  careful  study  of  the 
historic  faith,  on  the  one  ha /id,  and  the  historic  Church 
on  the  other.  We  must  be  ready  to  look  well  to  the 
foundations  upon  which  we  are  building,  and  see  to  it 
that  they  rest  securely  upon  the  Eternal  Rock  of 
Ages.  God's  truth  we  must  be  ready  to  follow,  wher- 
ever it  may  lead  us.  And  to  those  religious  bodies 
around  us,  whose  organization  has  been  established  in 
entire  independence  of  the  Apostolic  office,  we  would 
humbly  address  the  earnest  inquiry  whether,  on  this 
account  they  are  not  suffering  a  serious  loss,  yea 
more,  whether  the  blessed  unity  of  God's  household 
has  not,  thereby,  been  chiefly  disturbed. 

This  sacred,  Apostolic  office  which,  in  our  esteem, 
is  the  very  root  and  life  of  all  Church  order  and  au- 
thority, we  are  met  here  to  day  to  pass  on  to  another 


19 


who,  as  we  believe,  has  been  called  of  God  to  its  high 
and  holy  functions.  As  all  along  the  ages,  we  find  a 
continuous  line  of  successors  in  this  office  of  super- 
vision and  government,  so  would  we  recognize  the 
high  privilege  of  a  joyful  acceptance  of  what  we 
believe  has  been  thus  wisely  and  Divinely  ordained. 

This  venerable  Diocese  of  North  Carolina  has  been 
judged  too  large  and  laborious  a  field,  to  remain  any 
longer  under  the  care  aud  supervision  of  one  single 
Head.  And  the  separation  of  a  portion  of  its  territory 
into  a  new  and  independent  Diocese,  having  been 
sanctioned  and  ratified  by  the  General  Convention  of 
the  Church,  we  come  now  to  place  over  this  separate- 
part,  one  well  known  and  well  tried,  who  as  its  Chief 
Shepherd,  may  guide  and  direct  its  affairs. 

Upon  you,  my  Reverend  Brother,  thus  called  by  the 
unanimous  voice  of  the  Diocese,  and  with  the  approval 
of  the  whole  Church  to  this  high  and  holy  office,  upon 
you  this  solemn  responsibility  is  now  to  be  devolved. 
And  we  meet  here  to-day,  to  invest  you  with  a  share 
in  this  Apostolic  Bishoprick.  How  weighty  are  the 
cares,  how  varied  and  engrossing  the  duties  which  this 
office  imposes.  Even  the  heart  of  the  great  St.  Paul 
was  deeply  touched,  when  he  dared  to  think  of  what 
was  involved  in  it.  And  what  seemed  most  heavily  to 
press  upon  his  loving  heart,  he  unfolds  to  us  in  those 


20 


touching  words,  "Besides  that  which  cometh  upon  me 
daily,  the  cave  of  all  the  Churches  "  And  there  is  noth- 
ing but  the  thought  of  Christ's  love  for  us,  and  our 
own  responsive  love  for  Him,  which  can  uphold  and 
strengthen  us,  under  these  weighty  and  ceaseless  bur- 
dens. And,  without  that  love,  the  Episcopal  office 
can  only  be  a  hard  and  irksome  toil.  In  the  power  of 
that  holy  love,  how  faithfully  did  the  first  Apostles 
fulfil  their  great  commission.  Labour  and  sacrifice 
trials  and  sufferings,  cares  and  anxieties  were  all  made 
sweet  by  the  power  of  holy  love.  Ah!  yes,  it  is  the 
love  of  Christ  in  the  heart,  and  the  thought  of  His 
tender  sympathizing  love  for  us,  that  will  ever  exert  a 
cheering  and  comforting  influence,  amid  all  the  cares 
and  trials  of  our  holy  office.  And  the  blessed  truth 
of  God  which  we  are  called  onto  unfold  and  illustrate, 
we  may  speak  only  in  this  spirit  of  love.  Harshness, 
and  arrogance,  and  severity,  and  bitterness,  are  surely 
not  the  agencies  by  which  His  truth  can  be  advanced. 
These  are  clear  indications  of  an  unchastened  spirit. 
These  are  weapons  out  of  the  armoury  of  this  world, 
and  belong  not  to"  the  kingdom  of  Christ. 

Go  forth  then,  my  dear  brother,  in  the  Spirit  of  your 
Heavenly  Master,  and  yours  it  shall  be  to  find  the 
abundance  of  encouragement  and  comfort  and  conso- 
lation.    I  need  not  tell  you,  what  you  know  so  well 


2  I 


already,  that  your  lot  will  be  cast  among  a  kindly,  lov- 
ing and  sympathizing  people.  It  is,  indeed,  one  of  the 
saddest  crosses  of  my  life  to  be  separated  from  the  dear 
people  of  East  Carolina.  The  ten  years  in  which  I 
have  been  going  in  and  out  among  them,  have  knit 
them  to  me  in  the  bonds  of  the  tenderest  affection.  No 
Bishop  ever  labored  among  a  more  warm-hearted,  gen- 
e.ousand  affectionate  people.  Their  sympathy  and 
good  will — their  zealous  co-operation,  their  confiding 
regard  you  can  fully  count  on.  And  Oh  !  what  is 
there,  besides  the  grace  of  God,  which  can  so  sustain, 
encourage  and  comfort,  as  this  sympathy  of  loving 
hearts.  May  these  sacred  bonds,  in  your  case,  be  only 
daily  strengthened.  May  the  varied  desolate  places, 
in  this  fair  district,  soon  rejoice  and  blossom  as  the 
rose.  And  may  it  be  your  solace  and  comfort  to  find, 
on  every  side  of  you,  the  abundant  tokens  of  God's 
richest  blessing,  and  the  steady  advance  of  that  king- 
dom which  is  righteousness  and  peace,  and  joy  in  the 
Holy  Ghost.  And  may  we  all,  to  day,  join  earnestly, 
with  heart  and  voice,  in  the  triumphant  aspiration,  of 
the  Psalmist  "Peace  be  within  thy  walls,  and  plente- 
ousness  within  thy  palaces." 

"O  ever  pray  for  Salem's  peace  ; 

For  they  shall  prosp'rous  be, 

Thou  holy  city  of  our  God, 

Who  bear  true  love  to  thee." 


(goNSBGi^ATioN  Services  : 

Opening  Collects  and  Commandments  .   .  .  Bishop  of  Maine 


Epistle    Bishop  of  Springfield 

Gospel   Bishop  of  Maine 

Creed  Bishop  of  Springfield 

Hymn  J02. 

Sermon  Bishop  of  North  Carolina 

Hymn  270. 


Presentation  of  the  Bishop  Elect  by  the  Bishop  of  South  Caro- 
lina and  Ass't  Bishop  of  Virginia. 
Certificate  of  Election  and  Canonical  Testimonial — Rev.  Na- 
thaniel Harding,  Sec'y  of  Diocesan  Convention. 
Certificate  of  Consent  of  Standing  Committees — President  of 

Standing  Committee. 
Certificate  of  Consent  of  the  Bishops  .  .  .  Rev.  N.  C.  Hughes. 
Promise  of  Conformity — The  Bishop  Elect. 

Litany  Bishop  of  South  Carolina 

Interrogatories  Bishop  of  Mississippi 

Investiture  The  Attending  Presbyters 

CONSECRATION— By  the  Presiding  Bishop,  assisted  by  the 
other  Bishops  present. 
Hymn  424,  and  Signing  Letters  of  Consecration. 
Reading  of  Letter  of  Consecration — Rev.  Jos.  C.  Huske,.D.  D., 
Deputy  Registrar. 
Hymn  202. 

OFFICE  OF  THE  HOLY  COMMUNION. 
Offertory  and  Prayer  for  Christ's  Ch.  Militant — Bishop  of  Maine 
The  Exhortations  and  the  Confession — Ass't  Bishop  of  Virginia 
The  Absolution,  the  Comfortable  Words,  The  Prayer  of  Hum- 
ble Access,  the  Consecration  of  the  Elements — 
Presiding  Bishop. 
Communion  Hymn  207.  Distribution  of  the  Elements. 

Post  Communion  Bishop  of  North  Carolina 

Concluding  Prayer  and  Benediction  Presiding  Bishop 

Recessional  Hymn  425. 


W.  L.  De  Rosset,  Jr's.,  Water-Power  Presses,  Wilmington,  N.  C. 


